Friday 29 June 2012

My Random House experience

I recently finished two weeks of work experience at Random House in London, and it was amazing! It was my first time at a publishing company, and everything about it was so cool - the people, the fact that there were books EVERYWHERE, even the building itself. I felt like I'd infiltrated their building and spent the first few hours just staring at everything, completely starstruck.

I was in Ebury Publishing, and most of what I had to do involved mailing books out (which was cool because I got to write and sign letters on behalf of my mentors), filing book contracts, entering data, basic photocopying/printing, making spreadsheets of publishing contacts, and other lovely book-related things. I also got to see sample chapters of books that they're thinking of acquiring and publishing, which was pretty surreal.

My thoughts throughout the experience went something like this:

Day 1: The Random House building is the building in the Random House logo!!! Mind blown. 

Okay, so maybe this was obvious to everyone else, but I never noticed! When I showed up on the first day I was completely amazed by the fact that their main office in Pimlico actually looks like the one in the logo! I always thought that it was, you know, a random house. I find this unbelievably cool; like I'm a step closer to breaking the book/reality barrier.


Personal pic!














Day 2: Is it just me or is there free stuff everywhere?!

There are literally random book stands all over the building filled with books they've published - in the cafeteria, in the lobbies, in the hallways - and I'm pretty sure people just take them. I didn't know how to deal. It was just too much for me to handle. And if you're wondering if I took any, the answer is no, because I am a coward. I did, however, walk away from the experience with great exposure to the publishing industry.

Day 3: The-food-is-delicious-I-could-eat-this-every-day.

Food isn't something I even considered before I started, but just like in school, it soon became a huge part of the day. Considering there weren't many good eating options in the area (that I knew of, at least), I was expecting generic, awful cafeteria food. Of course, Random House had to go and prove me wrong. Their cafeteria has some of the cheapest, healthiest, most delicious canteen food I have ever had, and I was pretty impressed. 


And the lunchtime conversations are basically a dream come true for book lovers... People are generally so well-read and had so many great book recommendations from every genre imaginable. The atmosphere at Random House is just really great, and everyone I talked to seemed to love their job.

Days 4-5: Erotica is in!

Cornerstone, an imprint of Random House, actually published the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy! It was fascinating to see them in the midst of all this 50 Shades success, and I found myself cataloging and mailing out TONS of old and new erotica that they're publishing in its wake. People talk about this all the time in the YA community - the wizard craze brought on by Harry Potter, the vampire trend sparked by Twilight, the influx of dystopian novels in the aftermath of The Hunger Games - and it was so cool to see trends like this in action. I gained a whole new, practical appreciation for what this really means to a publishing company.

I also had the lovely task of tracking down the real addresses and names of erotica authors, as most of them use pseudonyms. I felt surprisingly gleeful looking at their real names; it was all kind of like one big game of "GOTCHA!".

Days 6-9: This is real work. 

I think a lot of the time I get caught up in glamorizing the publishing industry. While I know, on a logical level, that there is TONS of work that goes into the making of a book, it is so easy to fall into the mindset that publishing is this magical profession that pumps out books by the dozen with, I don't know, a wave of a wand and the tears of a unicorn or something equally fantastic. Hence my speechlessness on my first day.

This work experience was such a good reminder that this is a real industry, and just like all industries, there is so much work involved. I was exhausted at the end of every day just doing basic data entry, filing book contracts or mailing out the many, many books that have to be sent to reviewers, newspapers, foreign publishers, authors, agents, and the dozens of other people involved in making books happen.

Seeing even a glimpse of how the many departments all work together to create a single product was astounding, and has given me a newfound appreciation of all the hard work that they do. And yet, despite all this, everyone was so NICE!

Day 10: They pay their interns in books!!!

Their exact words: "Since we're not paying you, feel free to take any books you like." *gestures to the dozens of shelves all around the office*

I smile politely. "Aw, thank you!"

Inside I'm going: "Why would you say that?! ANY books I like? Don't you realize what a mistake you're making?!?"

I managed to resist. I was luckily working in Ebury Press, which has fantastic books that are 90% non-fiction and so didn't have as much of an appeal to me as, say, Young Adult... But in the end, I chose a couple and were given quite a few, as well as a Random House tote bag, and left extremely happy. Check out some of the great books they gave me on my Stacking the Shelves here!



Overall, this was an unforgettable experience, and absolutely perfect if you're looking to:
  • Learn more about the publishing industry
  • Gain some work experience 
  • Have FUN and meet great people (there are also always loads of other interns around)
  • Explore London and the rest of the UK
Check out Random House's work experience FB page if you're in the UK and interested in applying! They tend to put up available placements at the last minute, so keep a look out, because it really is a great time.

20 comments:

  1. Oh wow!! It seems like you had TONS of fun! The building looks absolutely gorgeous! Working with books all around you would be like some kind of dream to me haha! Good on you for having this amazing experience with a publishing house! I wish to also one day do an internship at a publishing place :) I enjoyed reading your experience, thanks for posting!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for reading, Nisha!! I hope you manage to get an internship one day! It really was the best experience for a book lover. Come to the UK and do it at RH? :)

      Delete
  2. Wow. Wow. WOW!! How lucky are you!! I really want to do some work experience with a publishing company myself, but generally you can't unless you're at least 18. Another 4 months for me. :'( This sounds like such an amazing experience, and to be surrounded by books all day...and be able to TAKE THEM??? How did you resist??? You...have a resistance to temptation that can only be made of steel reinforced by titanium reinforced by steel. Seriously. Congrats on the experience, and thanks for sharing! :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gahh so close!! I know exactly how you feel though, that was me a year ago! But they have tons of placements throughout the year so get on that next Summer! And LOL I know! I was just trying to keep it cool. I bet they knew exactly what they were doing...

      Delete
  3. OMG, this sounds like it was an awesome experience. Congrats, Lauren ;)

    I wouldn't mind being paid in books actually (hm, I guess, there are no doubts I'm a book lover)- I had never thought of that before, haha! But wow, that is so cool!

    And this post was just so entertaining and insightful. Your love of books really shines through, girl!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hahaha exactly! Definitely the most interesting/entertaining form of payment I've ever received. Thanks Jen! I didn't want to go into too much detail because I'm not sure how much exactly I'm allowed to say but that's exactly what I wanted to get across, so I'm glad it came through. :)

      Delete
  4. Oh wow, that sounds absolutely amazing! I would love to do work experience in a publishing house! And all those books? How could you resist! I doubt I would be able to. :D I'm glad you had such a great time! :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for reading Sam!! You definitely should if you get the chance; it was such a good experience, especially for book bloggers/lovers!

      Delete
  5. I loved reading this! So cool that you could do work experience at Random House. Looks like you had a great time :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Kim, I'm glad you liked it! :) Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  6. That is so cool! Wow, I'm glad you had such an amazing experience! And they paid you in books? I likely would have started to cry...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hahaha gah I know what you mean! Was so overwhelmed. Thanks for reading and the follow back, btw! :)

      Delete
  7. What a great article!! :) And it's not just you, I had no idea it wasn't just a random house on their logo but the actual building! :O

    I've been thinking about applying for a while but I'll wait until next year. Can't wait, though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hehe I know! I thought that was so cool! Definitely apply if you get the chance! I can't imagine any book blogger/lover not enjoying it. And you can put it on your CV. A total win-win. :) Thanks, Vicky!

      Delete
  8. wow wow wow wow WOW!!! That sounds SO amazing!!!! I am so jealous I am practically turning green with envy!!! (Okay, not QUITE. But almost.) It sounds like book heaven!!! And people just randomly TAKE books? Cool! Although if I went, I'd probably be too much of a coward to take any too...
    Thanks for sharing that, it sounds like a brilliant experience, and I so want to apply now!
    :D

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. *sad face* I'm too young to apply for a Random House work experience :( Guess I'll just have to wait... I'm so applying when I'm in university or something! :)

      Delete
    2. It really was! Haha okay so in my excitement I was exaggerating a little about people randomly taking books, but people definitely have access to free books there since they have worked on publishing them and all. :) Don't want to sound like I'm understating how much work they put in!

      Aww I'm so sad that you're too young! As soon as you turn 18 go for it! You can do it in the summer before you start uni or something. I really hope you manage to do it because you sound like you'll be a perfect candidate. Thanks for reading, Catherine!

      Delete
  9. Wow that's amazing I loved your post :D ! Do you think I can apply when I'll be in England even if i'm french?
    But I don't know anyone in London so I guess it would be difficult to find a place to stay ^^.
    It sounds like an amazing experience though :).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, you don't have to be from the UK (though I guess this could change)! You just have to be over 18. Accommodation would be tricky, though! Go for it if you get the chance! :) If you're not too far from London you might be able to commute?

      Delete
    2. Well I'll be living in Chester (near Liverpool) so I'm not going to be close to London :/...

      Delete

I love meeting other bloggers and readers, so let me know what you think! I try to always reply to comments, either directly or on your blog.

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...